Men's Fall Golf 2004 preview                                                                                  
September 18,  2004

UMass Dartmouth golf team wants to keep

program moving forward in Fall 2004 season

(Dartmouth, MA) -- Coming off a very successful season a year ago, the UMass Dartmouth men’s golf team heads into the Fall 2004 season with a challenging schedule ahead and a strong roster of returning veterans and newcomers.

Junior Mike Sigismondo (Shrewsbury, MA) and sophomore Kyle Pelletier (Acushnet, MA) are the Corsairs’ top returners from the last year’s team, which captured the Massachusetts intercollegiate Championship last spring.  UMass Dartmouth wrapped up the Spring 2004 season with a fifth-place finish at the New England District Three Shootout at Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown, Mass, just missing out on a berth into the NCAA Tournament.

“Although we lost three starters to graduation, the team has a solid foundation of experience and several good-looking newcomers,” said Corsair Coach Paul Fistori. “We have a demanding Fall schedule that should help us build a foundation for the future.”

Fistori will have to replace three of his top players from a year ago in Brent Amaral, Blake Wilson and Kyle Skubus.  In addition to this two returning veterans, Fistori is welcoming back Mike Morgan (Dartmouth, MA), who returned to the team after taking a year off from school.  Another returning player with experience is Dan Cronin (Peabody, MA). The Corsairs are also hopeful about a pair of newcomers to the program, first-year players Matt Shea (Melrose, MA) and Andrew Jacobs (Turners Falls, MA).

The New England Intercollegiate Golf Association Division III Northeast Coach of the Year last Fall, Fistori is looking to duplicate his team’s success of one year ago. In the Fall of 2003, the Corsairs were fifth in the ECAC Division III championships after placing first in the ECAC qualifier.  UMass Dartmouth tied for 10^th overall in the NEIGA championships in addition to winning the WPI Invitational and a third at the Williams College Invitational.

In an effort to continue the momentum for the Corsairs this Fall, Fistori has added the Duke Nelson Tournament at Middlebury College on Sept. 25-26 along with invitational tournaments at Williams College, Western New England College and the season-ending NEIGA tournament at the Captains Course in Brewster, MÅ.

UMass Dartmouth will also host an event against yet to be announced opponents later this season.   Playing out of their home course at Allendale Country Club in Dartmouth, MA, the Corsairs will host a multi-team event on Oct. 21.

The Corsairs will try to repeat as the winner of the ECAC Qualifier at Hampden Golf Course on Sept 21 with an eye towards the ECAC Championships to be held in Rochester, NY on Oct. 2-3.